Hazards

As with any community, there are many hazards that the City of Nanaimo must be aware of. Hazards exist in several forms, such as natural climate-driven or geophysical hazards like windstorms and earthquakes. Hazards also exist due to human activity, such as hazardous material spills or vehicle accidents.

But how do we know what to prepare for?

We can measure disaster risk by considering how damaging a disaster would be to us (Vulnerability) and how likely it is for this disaster to occur (Likelihood). Vulnerability and Likelihood are then combined to give us a calculation of Risk. We can then rank our Hazards by the highest Risk rating, which allows us to focus our efforts on the most important possible hazards.

The process by which this is determined is called a Hazard, Risk, Vulnerability Assessment (HRVA). The current HRVA for Nanaimo can be found here.

One of the most significant regional hazards we face is an earthquake. This video offers a hypothetical, but realistic earthquake scenario that looks at what damage can be expected and what people can do to prepare themselves. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_IWJx-mOw0

To learn more about earthquakes and how to prepare, visit Shake Out BC.